A City for the People

A recurring thought throughout both articles is the designation that the city is for the people. This stems from the fact that the city is the people, and as such, the mosaic of venues it offers must provide for and interest the vast diversity of its people. Jacobs, whom heavily influenced public planning towards this new perspective of urban life, was simply a self-taught urbanite, whose knowledge came from extensive personal experience and interest in the city she was a part of. Generally, college is supposed to expand one’s own perspective by exposing individuals to others that may have stark contrasts in upbringings, experiences and values. It seems, however, that these educational facilities failed to do this in the sphere of public planning as it pushed along the dogma that many now hate Robert Moses for.   Jacobs’ lack of a degree and her social and political activism allowed her to make city planners rethink standardized practices.

Jacobs relied heavily on the people of her community to challenge the “growth machine” that would level homes for failed attempts to “revitalize downtown.” These articles show how powerful people can be when they aggregate around a cause. Jacobs inspired a new age of community organizing, ushering in “hundreds of community development corporations.” In a democratic nation, where power should be in the hands of the people, it is reassuring to read and hear the stories of communities being able to protect their interests. It should be “the citizens [that] decide what end results they want” and city governments should do everything in their power to acknowledge this truth.